The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-24

growing INTO all she wanted MN To be, ana
her having him and his love when she was
old--and il was about all she had to look
forward to, and goodness knows she hasn't
much TO look backward on, for her whole
married life before that baby came had
been just slavery to his folks-the old
father and mother who gave him the place
ifhe'd take care of them, and they saw to it
that he did, and that she did too; they just
walked right over her, and sat down on
her, and she was soft enough to cry when
they died And this was the thanks she
got for all her slavery-there came along
man from the West, wanting to adopt a
boy, and Harry didn't know a thing about
the man; he might want to bring the boy Mp
TO be pirate, for all he could say. And he
just gave the boy to that man out and
out; and Essie begged and pleaded and ar
gued and cried and went to bed sick, sick
with the chids crying as well as her own.
Twas no use The child belonged to him;
and he gave him to that man, and a condi-
ton the man made was that the child should
never see or hear of the Farnsworths again.
And he took him off; and Essie doesn't even
know his name to-day, and she'll never see
the child again, and she almost went mad.
And she's poor, thin shadow, without a
joy in life-she doesn't seem to care for any
thing-she doesn't even care enough to re-
proach Harry Farnsworth. But I'm not
the suffering saint she is. | re-
preached him. Children are noisy in
the house, are theyP says l. And you
want peace. You make desert and you
call it peacep says l. 1t wouldn't be
peace long with you in it, you vixenP says
he. All the same, you wanted ME in it
badly enough onceH says l. And SO he did.
And there's another thing I'm sure! I'm
sure it's a reason for thanksgiving, if ever
there was one, that didn't marry Harry
Farnsworth. | guess I'd have strangled
him | couldn't despise him any more than
| dol Humph-yes, well-Harry Farms
worth! And then there's my other sister,
Louisa How she did set her heart ON
Larry Wellmanl And didn't wonder. He
was the most engaging fellow. And hand
great blue eyes full of heavenly light, and
his yellow hair in masses, and his face as if
it was cut out of marble; and when | looked
at him | always thought of the morning
star. And people said he was going to be
anything he chose, minister, Senator,
President. And he had little some
thing; and they got married. And she was
in this world or the next. And SO was he
And the first thing she knew he came home
one night and went to bed with his boots
on. And she's never had days peace from
that hour to this. And he's never come to
anything; and they live from hand to
mouth any way they can. She never knows
how he's coming home, drunk or sober, and
she never dares to 60 anywhere with him,
she'ss SO sure of being shamed out of her life by
his getting SOS to be foolish; and she never
dareS to have any company because she
couldn't endure their seeing him and scorn-
ing him, she trying to keep secret what all
the world knows. And she sits up for him
nights, thinking this is his step and that is
his step, in despair when it isn't his step, and
in worse despair when at last it is; running
to the window, and running to the door,
holding her breath to listen, and her pulse
fluttering and stopping and racing on again
enough to give her heart disease, sick with
disgust when he does come and wishing she
could die, and loving him so she can't bear
the thought of going and leaving him-her
life Just one long pang of fear and shame.
Yes-well-I shant have to go far to find
another reason for thanksgiving in the fact
that Larry Wellman isn't my husband!
Three brothers-in-law, and not decent one
among them. l don't know as that is much
reason for thanksgiving, to be sure; but
perhaps they're as good as the general
run. The way mothers bring up their
boys, fiattering their vanity and pam
pering their selfishneSs, and making the
girls wait on them by inches, would
spoil the Cherubim and Seraphim if they
were boys. | must say / think the world
would be great deal better off if there
wasn't man in it! I've no use for them.
They're animals, they're tyrants, they're
animated appetites. The good ones, if there
are any, are too self-righteouS to live, and
the bad ones are too Ubiquitous to be allowed
to die! What woman wants to marry for
who's got enough to live on without marry
ing, passes me. She can't 60 anywhere, she
can't do anything, she can't give away, she
can't invite home, she can't draw an indie
pendent breath. She is cipher, nonen-
tity; she hasn't a right to herself or her
children, or her labor or her property
Marry9 And what in the world fors TO
lose her freedom, to give herself master,
to make herself a slave. HUMPHREYS
-well-if l thank the Lord more
for one thing than another, it's
that I'm single woman and
going to remain so! There goes that bell
again, and there's only one more pie left be-
sides the minister's" And Miss Trudy ran
into the pantry and seized the pie, and hur-
rving to the door opened it and thrust out
the pie into the night, crying: ''Therel It's
the last one Take it,"
II don't want your pie, Trudy," said a
deep voice from the darkness, and a hand
laid hold of her own as she started back,
and a stalwart form came into the beam of
light, and mounted the step, and entered
the door and closed it behind them. II don't
want your pie, Trudy, want you"
''Geoffrey! Godfrey Mastersp' she cried
in fainting voice, and caught his arm for
support an instant. IL didn't know you
i didn't expect"
"No,n he said, 81 don't believe you did.
Nobody did. didn't myself. didn't sup
pose-lnyself I'd ever see you again" And
he led her in and seated her in the chair she
had just left, and took another opposite,
himself.
''Where did you come from, Geoffrey?"
stammered Miss Trudy, when she could
speak
Nowhere" said Godfrey.
"And where are you goingP' she resumed,
after little
Nowhere, " he replied again.
1.-THE fact is, Trudy," he said presently,
after warming his hands at the blaze, and
quite as if they had parted yesterday, 81
haven't been very lucky. / went away in
pursuit of pastime 1 haven't caught up
with her yet. | am back after twenty five
years of it, tired out, without dollar in
my pocket, or any clothes but these stand
in. And looked at the old house that had
strangers in it, and looked at the old
graves that held allmy people, and weren't
going to become tramp, and there was
nothing left for me but the river out here.
And l saw this light, and l came this way,
didn't know why; and l looked in the
window and saw you. You haven't changed
much in these twenty -fve years, Trudy. I'd
have known you anywhere. The same old
rose in your cheek, the same soft fire in
vnur eve I've been looking at Won this last